Vanessa del Rio

And now for something completely different....

Today retired American adult actress Vanessa del Rio is 56. Born as Ana Maria Sanchez on March 31, 1952 in Harlem, New York, Vanessa is credited as being the first Hispanic porn star (she is of mixed Puerto Rican and Cuban descent) and since 1974, has appeared in over 200 adult films.
She's also appeared in several music videos and, in 1996, portrayed herself in an episode of "NYPD Blue."
Despite her retirement, Vanessa still remains active in the adult entertainment industry through her website and by attending award shows and conventions.


And last October, German art book publisher Taschen released a biography titled Vanessa del Rio: Fifty Years of Slightly Slutty Behavior. Only 1,500 copies were printed - each signed by Vanessa, and one copy contains a “golden ticket,” which allows the lucky recipient an all-expenses paid night out with the lady herself, along with a “world famous photographer” to document the occasion (eat your heart out, Willie Wonka). This deluxe, heavily illustrated magnum opus weighs about 12 pounds, and includes a 140-minute DVD documentary (200 copies of the special "Artists edition" also includes a signed watercolor lithograph of Vanessa by artist Robert Crumb). But it isn't cheap - the retail price is £400 / $790 (or £750 / $1,482 for the special edition), although one bookshop is offering it online for £277.50 - still too pricey for this blogger, though.
Many happy returns anyway, Ms. del Rio....a lady determined to grow old disgracefully (in the best possible taste).
Vanessa del Rio at the Internet Movie Database

A terminal situation?

It's kind of fitting that my last post was about the failure of English football's "golden generation" - reading about the 'teething problems' with the baggage handling system at Heathrow's brand new Terminal 5 building (creating a backlog of 15,000 bags), this sceptred isle seem to be cursed with projects that are either late, never function correctly, are hugely over budget, or all of the above!

Who can forget the £758 million ($1.511 billion) Millennium Dome which was insolvent almost from the day it opened? It's now the 20,000-seat 02 Arena, after a £350 million ($698 million) makeover, which hosts concerts and sporting events.
Or the new Wembley Stadium, whose construction (according to unconfirmed newspaper reports) went over budget - some say by more than £100 million. Then there's the ill-fated Beagle 2 probe, which went missing en route to Mars in December 2003.

And why stop there? Let's not forget the fiasco involving Northern Rock, which got into difficulties last year because the bank was ill-prepared for the global credit crunch. The UK financial watchdog, the Financial Services Authority (FSA), has recently admitted that it failed to monitor Northern Rock adequately.
Watchdog admits failure over Rock

But it's more than just embarrassment. The latest publication from the venerable Time magazine, reported how Britain's youth are terrifying the adult population. OK - all youngsters in this country aren't out of control yobs. But when one considers that 27 teenagers were murdered in London in 2007 (and 11 have died already in the capital this year), when one sees the latest display of public drunkenness on TV, there is a perception that responsibility for one's actions is an unknown concept in Britain today.
Britain's Mean Streets

But I digress....
Looking at the misfortune befalling Terminal 5, which cost £4.3 billion ($8.7 billion) and was supposed to be the pride of airports operator BAA and British Airways (which currently enjoys exclusive use of the facility), it appears that no real testing of the systems was done to ensure that this chaos didn't occur. Whomsoever was in charge of this mess should be given the boot.
T5 cancellations set to continue

Not all "Ab Fab".......

It seems some senior England stars are not impressed with new coach Fabio Capello's no-nonsense, hardline approach to guiding the team.
Hard line Capello splits England

Well, tough! If I had my way, I'd tell those underachieving prima donnas to close the door on their way out of the training camp.

But I'm past caring about this England team, because (not for the first time) this "golden generation" has flattered to deceive all and sundry. The result? They look more like a fools-gold generation, instead.
So give 'em hell, Signor Capello....

Let it be...

It appears Heather Mills is still trying to prove ex-hubby Sir Paul McCartney is worth £800million ($1.6 billion). The former glamour model has reportedly employed a team of forensic accountants to justify her allegation about Sir Paul's wealth, despite the court-verified amount of just £400 million ($800 million).

You'd think the lady would be grateful with a £24million settlement (approx $48.7million).
Heather - let it be....
Heather Mills to challenge Sir Paul's valuation

Felecia Danay

Belated "happy returns" to American adult actress, nude model, and feature dancer Felecia Danay, who turned 36 on March 1st. Felecia is considered one of the first female performers in the adult film industry to establish herself by performing only with women, and has starred in over 200 adult films.
Felecia Danay at the Internet Movie Database

Danger: nipple rings...

A Texas woman complained she was forced to remove a nipple ring with pliers in order to board an airplane. The woman has demanded an apology and her attorney has contacted the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) this week.
37 year-old Mandi Hamlin said she was trying to board a flight from Lubbock to Dallas on Feb. 24 when her nipple piercings was discovered by a TSA agent using a handheld detector, after she passed through a larger scanner without problems.
According to Hamlin, several male officers then told her she could not board her flight until the jewelry was removed.
Hamlin managed to remove one bar-shaped piercing, but had difficulty with the second, a ring. She said the officer gave her pliers to remove the ring, which caused her physical pain.
"I wouldn't wish this experience upon anyone," Hamlin said at a news conference. "My experience with TSA was a nightmare I had to endure. No one deserves to be treated this way."
Nipple ring search procedures faulty, TSA admits

Apparently Hamlin should have been informed by the TSA agents she had a right to a "pat-down" inspection, instead of removing her nipple piercings. This option was never offered to her and the TSA has admitted a review of their procedures is in order.
All the same, if I was Janet Jackson or Ice-T's girlfriend Coco, I'd think carefully about flying in future....

Sarah Jessica Parker & the Unsexy Five (continued)..

Last November I wrote about Sarah Jessica Parker heading an "Unsexy" list.
Well now it appears Ms. Parker was upset by the poll that labelled her the "unsexiest woman alive". In an interview with Grazia magazine, she asks "Am I really the unsexiest woman in the world?"

Quick answer, no. To quote from David Hume's Essays, Moral and Political (1742):

"Beauty in things exists merely in the mind which contemplates them."
Sarah Jessica Parker Hurt by Poll Calling Her 'Unsexiest Woman Alive'

Becks gets his 100th cap

And thus it came to pass that The Blessed One, aka professional footballer David Robert Joseph Beckham (OBE), duly received his 100th England cap against France, who then proceeded to win 1-0, thanks to a penalty by Franck Ribery.

But enough of the football! Next week, Becks will pick up his knighthood from a grateful nation, and the week after that, the Pope will begin the canonization process to make him a living saint....

Sorry, but I'm so fed up with the hoopla about Becks' 100th cap, that I avoided France v England, and watched "Stargate: Ark Of Truth" instead......
France 1-0 England

Happy Easter...

Well - the world financial markets are volatile at the moment and Tibet is in turmoil. Iraq and Darfur are still blighted by conflict, and climate change hangs over mankind like the proverbial sword of Damocles.
But, to qoute from Franklin D. Roosevelt, the only thing we have to fear is fear itself.

So, this weekend, lets celebrate the joys of Easter....Happy Easter, one and all!

Iraq - 5 years later

On 20th March 2003, America, Britain and other allied forces (the "coalition of the willing") invaded Iraq. At the time according to US President George W. Bush and (then) UK PM Tony Blair, the objectives of the invasion were "to disarm Iraq of weapons of mass destruction (WMD), to end Saddam Hussein's support for terrorism, and to free the Iraqi people."
5 years, 4,200 US & UK troops killed and 90,000 dead Iraq civillians (according to conservative estimates) later, what has been the result?
Well, Saddam's gone. But no WMDs have been found, and the reputations of Messrs George W. Bush & Tony Blair are in tatters. Also many people still believe that the chief reason of the invasion was to secure US oil supplies and to make Iraq safe for the US oil industry.

Meanwhile, last week a roadside bomb killed at least 16 people travelling on a bus in southern Iraq, according to reports. The attack came a day after eight US soldiers and an interpreter were killed in two separate incidents.
Toxic world fallout from Iraq invasion
Iraq: Who won the war?

Meanwhile in North London....

Yet another draw for Arsenal today. Let's be honest - the title is now Man United's to lose and I can't see Fergie's men getting complacent.

And lets not write off Chelski either - Arsenal could find themselves staring at third place by the end of the season.

Birmingham, Villa, Wigan, and now Middlesborough - Arsenal has drawn their last four Premier League matches, which puts a dent in their title aspirations, and Arsène's team doesn't have anyone to blame but themselves for these setbacks.

There's still a chance Arsenal can win the title (and the team are still in the Champions League too), but a big effort is required to win all their remaining games.

Arsenal 1-1 Middlesbrough

The (Spanish) road to Eurovision 2008

After the Irish rubber turkey, we now have a Spanish Elvis....

Rodolfo Chikilicuatre, an Elvis-parodying reggae-rapper with a minuscule plastic guitar, was officially endorsed as the Spanish participant for Eurovision 2008. Chikilicuatre (aka 38 year-old comedy actor, David Fernandez) received 56.28% of the votes, with his nonsensical and satirical ditty "Baila el chiki chiki" (Dance the chiki chiki).

Eurovision this year should be very interesting (for a change)....
Spain sends kitsch Elvis to take on Irish rubber turkey at Eurovision

The (new) seven deadly sins....

The Vatican has updated the traditional seven deadly sins by adding seven modern mortal sins:

• Environmental pollution
• Genetic manipulation
• Accumulating excessive wealth
• Inflicting poverty
• Drug trafficking and consumption
• Morally debatable experiments
• Violation of fundamental rights of human nature

These new mortal sins are part of the Church's attempts to revive the Roman Catholic practice of confession.
I'd rather leave it to God to determine whether I'm a miserable sinner or not...besides what was wrong with the original deadly sins?

• Pride
• Envy
• Gluttony
• Lust
• Anger
• Greed
• Sloth

And I can't see celluloid serial killer John Doe being so inspired by the "modern sins" of the obscenely rich, environmental polluters and genetic scientists as he was with the original deadly sins in the classic movie "Se7en".
Fewer confessions and new sins

When the legend becomes fact...

Apparently rapper & ex-con Lil' Kim is none too impressed with radio DJ Goldengirl's fantasies about her.

It appears Goldengirl (aka Lisa Natson), hostess of a late night sex talk show on Philadelphia's Power 99 FM, has included a "dream sequence" in her new book, "Sex & Celebrities: The Truth, the Whole Truth, the Naked Truth", which details an imaginary intimate encounter with the famed female rapper.

The only problem is that this imaginary sexual liasion is now being misinterpreted as fact. This has led to Kim vehemently denying having any sort of sexual relationship and threatening legal action.

Goldengirl is reportedly "surprised the misrepresented story got such traction on the Internet". She should watch the classic western "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance" - there's a quote which sums this up perfectly:

When the legend becomes fact, print the legend.

Nina Hartley will be 49...

On March 11th, Nina Hartley will be 49 years old. Born in 1959 (as Marie Louise Hartman in Berkeley, California) Nina is a Jewish American adult actress, film director, sex educator and registered nurse, who has also appeared in mainstream movies, such as "Boogie Nights" (made in 1997).
In 1982, while attending nursing school in San Francisco, Nina began working as a stripper. She moved into pornographic movies in 1984 and has since appeared in over 400 adult films, becoming a legend within the industry, with over 20 years of experience (while Nina holds a bachelor's degree in nursing, she reportedly chose pornography over a nursing career because she couldn't handle watching people die).
Nina is also an outspoken sex-positive feminist, and is an ardent supporter of the adult film industry.
So, here's many happy returns to you, Nina....
Wikipedia entry for Nina Hartley

Farewell Jodrell Bank?

Moves to close the observatory at Jodrell Bank have been described by its celebrated founder, Professor Sir Bernard Lovell, as disastrous and absurd.
Jodrell Bank achieved international importance 51 years ago when it succeeded in tracking the USSR's first Sputnik satellite, and in 1959 its telescope received the very first pictures transmitted from the far side of the Moon.
But due to an £80m shortfall in science research, an assessment panel has listed its flagship eMerlin project - a country-wide network of seven giant astronomy dishes - as a "lower priority" for UK physics and astronomy. Nearly £8 million has already been spent on eMerlin, which is now set to go to waste.

We need to get our priorities sorted out. I cannot understand how Jodrell Bank could be threatened with closure, while £9.3bn is earmarked to host the 2012 Olympic Games in London, which will drain £2.2bn from lottery causes.
Jodrell Bank fears funding loss

Kitten Natividad is 60

A belated "happy 60th birthday" for Francesca Isabel Natividad, better known to the world as the buxom Mexican-American film actress and exotic dancer Kitten Natividad.

Kitten was born on February 1948 in Juarez, Chihuahua, Mexico (wikipedia claim the date of birth is Feb 14th; however the Internet Movie Database states Feb 13th) and is mostly known for her appearances in the cult movies directed by the late Russ Meyer, with whom she had an on-off relationship for 15 years.

Prior to her collaboration with Meyer, Kitten worked as a housekeeper for the actress Stella Stevens. She then turned to go-go dancing, before moving into stripping, culminating in being named Miss Nude Universe. Kitten has appeared in other mainstream films and also made hardcore adult movies in her later years (a decision she has since regretted, according to one website).

In October 1999 Kitten underwent double-mastectomy surgery for treatment of breast cancer, but this hasn't stopped her making movies (such as "Night at the Golden Eagle" in 2002) or appearing at burlesque/pin-up/cult film conventions.
Wikipedia entry for Kitten Natividad
IMDb Biography for Kitten Natividad
Kitten Natividad's MySpace page

The magic of the FA Cup

Apart from Arsenal's exit from of the competition (the manner of which still leaves me feeling shame-faced), what an amazing FA Cup this year has been! I expected both Man U and Chelski to reach the semi-finals today, but their respective opponents Portsmouth and Barnsley had other ideas. Barnsley, in particular, deserved to win - they were the better side and made their multi-million pound opponents look ordinary (another reminder to a certain Mr. Abrahmovich that money doesn't always guarantee success).

In an earlier post, I wondered about the future of the FA Cup, against the attitude of Premiership sides, but now I can't help feeling that if a "smaller club" won this year, this could prove more beneficial to the tournament. Barnsley showed today that there is still no better cup competition than the FA Cup.
PS: I hope we're spared another final like last year's between Man Utd & Chelski....
Barnsley 1-0 Chelsea
Man Utd 0-1 Portsmouth

Well done lads....

All I can say about Arsenal beating AC Milan 2-0 at the San Siro is.... unbelievable, simply unbelievable! I still can't believe they knocked out the current European Champions at their own ground!
Tuesday night was one of our best European nights ever - and Fabregas was amazing, truly amazing.
But we haven't won anything yet - so let's savour the glory, but keep our feet on the ground....
AC Milan 0-2 Arsenal (agg 0-2)

Changing of the guard....

In case you are looking for my sister blog (Saints & Sinners), you won't find it, I'm afraid.
Due to pressures of work, and other commitments, I've decided to delete "OM3GA's Saints & Sinners" - so there is only Alpha to OM3GA (and I'll be making a few changes to this blog as well).
Perhaps another day, when my workload isn't so heavy, I'll look at re-starting a sister blog again. But not today.

Old Spice?

The Spice Girls bade farewell to fans after their final concert via a "thank you" note on their website. Emma Bunton, Melanie Chisholm, Melanie Brown, Geri Halliwell and Victoria Beckham cut short their Return of the Spice Girls tour earlier last month, blaming "family commitments" and cancelling future shows in Beijing, Sydney, Cape Town and Buenos Aires.
However reports have suggested the real reason for the shortened tour has more to do with backstage rows and a lack of interest in some of the cities they were due to perform in.

It is said that incensed fans have started a hate campaign on the Internet after the Spice Girls cancelled the tour. In my opinion, they were spared aural punishment. I didn't think much of the Spice Girls back in the 1990s, and I still don't today. It's incredible to think that they have each reportedly netted £10 million ($19.8 million) from their 47-date "world tour". I wouldn't spend a penny watching them lip-sync - sorry, I meant perform.
Spice Girls in emotional goodbye

The road to Eurovision 2008....

"X Factor" runner-up Andy Abraham has been chosen as the UK's entry for the 2008 Eurovision Song Contest after winning a live public vote on BBC One last night.

43 year-old Abraham beat five other competitors in the "Eurovision: Your Decision" contest with his song Even If.
The other hopefuls were Ex-EastEnders star Michelle Gayle (who had had a number four hit in the UK with Sweetness in 1994), Simona Armstrong, Rob McVeigh and two girlbands LoveShy and The Revelations.

The ex-dustman appeared in the second series of the "X Factor" show in 2005 and lost out to Shayne Ward.
A year later he released his debut album, The Impossible Dream, which reached number two in the UK Top 40 charts. His follow-up record, Soul Man, reached number 19.
The father-of-two described his Eurovision song, which he wrote himself, as a "funky love-song about a guy who's found genuine love with a girl". Even If will also be the title track of his third album which he is currently working on.

The Eurovision Song Contest takes place in Belgrade on 24 May, featuring 43 countries.

I'll suspend my judgement for the time being, since I haven't heard Even If yet. But after our previous crap entries over the years (Daz Sampson and Scooch comes to mind), I'm rather hoping the Irish entry wins this year - Dustin the puppet turkey.
X Factor star to enter Eurovision

When the going gets tough...

When Kevin Keegan was unveiled as the new manager of Newcastle United, it was described as the return of the Geordie "Messiah". Newcastle turned to former boss Keegan, who had the team challenging for the Premiership summit last time he was in charge, in the hope that he could revive their fortunes. There were the doubters (like this blogger) who viewed Keegan's appointment more warily.
Yesterday afternoon Matt Derbyshire's last-minute goal gave Blackburn Rovers victory over Newcastle, providing more ammunition to those doubters and piling further misery on Keegan's team, who now haven't won a Premiership match since the middle of December.
One can't lay the blame for the team's decline at the present manager's feet (by most accounts Newcastle were unlucky to lose yesterday), but their slide towards the relegation zone is as perilous as the recent woes of their sponsor, Northern Rock.

Can Keegan still turn Newcastle around? Will he be able to re-energise the club with the trademark swagger and panache that nearly won them the 1995-96 Premiership title, when he was in charge? Watch this space....
Newcastle 0-1 Blackburn